Jack Britt's Xavier Nixon got a surprise Sunday - his dad got to watch the state title game from Kandahar, Afghanistan.
Dec 15, 2008
CHAPEL HILL — Jack Britt has one of the top players in the country on their team this year in offensive tackle Xavier Nixon, and the senior is in a special situation.
Both Xavier's mother and father are serving actively in the Army, and his father, Command Sgt. Maj. Kenneth Nixon, is overseas. His mother is stationed at Fort Bragg now, and she attended the game in Chapel Hill on Sunday.
Xavier found out hours before he played in the 4-AA state championship game Sunday that his father would be watching the game live from Kandahar, Afghanistan.
"He was excited about that," Xavier's mother, Fotini Nixon, told WRAL on Sunday. "I'm sure he's excited to get the feedback from his dad once the game is over."
In Afghanistan's time zone, the game started around 1 a.m., and Xavier's mother spoke with her husband over the phone periodically from the stands.
"I can't be there with the rest of the fans ... but I'm doing it from thousands of miles away," his father told WRAL via webcam Sunday. "This is something that I will always remember; that I watched my son have the opportunity to win a state championship from Afghanistan."
The elder Nixon said this game was about more than winning or losing. It was about letting his son know that he's there for him even when continents separate them.
"He understands that this is my job, this is my chosen profession, and he knew that if I was there, I wouldn't have missed it."
Xavier was chosen to play in the Army All-American Bowl in January, and he has been announced as one of the finalists for the National Player of the Year honor. However, the senior from Fayetteville has already made Army history. Xavier is the first participant in the history of the Army All-American Bowl to have both parents on active duty in the Army.
At one time during Nixon's career, both of his parents were deployed overseas in the Middle East.
When Xavier suits up for the Army All-American Bowl in January, he will get another special honor; his father will be there to watch him – this time in person.
Britt fell to Richmond County in a state championship thriller, 38-35. The Buccaneers finish the season 14-2, with both losses coming to the Raiders.
While speaking with WRAL on Sunday, Xavier's father said that his son's list of potential colleges has been narrowed to three.
That list includes, in no particular order, North Carolina, Florida and LSU.
The senior has received a scholarship offer from almost every major program in the United States.
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